Your Mommy paints the sunset.
Your Dad lassos the moon.
Their arms circle ‘round you,
They sing a goodnight tune.
You hug your friends together -
Cuddle Bear and Glow Worm, too.
Funny Monkey’s on the pillow,
Standin’ guard on you.

And everything’s okay.
There’s no monsters in the closet.
Your parents love each other -
They ain’t never goin’ away.*

In a Child’s Room, music and lyrics by Norm Hacking, from both the tribute album and his “Best Of.”

Norm Hacking, a much loved local Scarborough roots musician, died Nov. 25 at his Scarborough home of an apparent heart attack. He was 57
A memorial celebration of his music, poetry – and life – is planned for Thursday, Dec. 6 at the Renaissance Cafe on Danforth Avenue, just west of the Woodbine Subway Station.

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With Riverdale musicians like the Barenaked Ladies Steven Page again throwing in their support to the annual Riverdale Share Christmas Concert, slated for Sunday, Dec. 9 at the Danforth Music Hall, it’s no wonder that a sell-out is all but guaranteed.

What is remarkable is that the $10 ticket price remains the same despite the remarkable line-up of Riverdale musicians and their friends who are slated to once again donate their time, including Murray McLauchlan, Cindy Church, Russell deCarle and Lorraine Segato, just to name a few of the more than 100 performers (including local choirs) expected on stage.

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This past week I watched the Samba Squad’s Drums We Love documentary on DVD and it was enjoyable.

I hope to get an interview with leader Rick Lazar and some members in the very near future.

Although a documentary, the DVD wisely contained several complete songs, so it also functioned as a mini-concert DVD.

It was the first time I heard them and I was impressed at the Brazilian beats which were infectious.

What made it more entertaining for me is that I went in thinking it would be just about drums which probably still would have been interesting. But in fact most of the numbers have vocal tracks – and stand up as songs in their own right.

Already aired on Vision TV and Bravo this DVD will be officially released at Lula Lounge Friday, Dec. 7.

Meanwhile, we’ll have an official review and story on this unique musical entourage which started out as a community Brazilian drumming group and is still anchored by regular folks from throughout the city.

When long-time Scarborough resident Garen Markarian released his three-song EP last year, he managed to get some airtime on 102.1 the Edge, Toronto’s popular cutting edge rock station, not to mention plenty of play on university radio stations.

One of them certainly was the UofT Scarborough Campus radio station where he was a deejay with a weekly one-hour show when he was a student there in neuro-sciences.

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The new album from the Scarborough duo of Sheila Carabine and Amanda Walther, otherwise known as Dala, which is slated to hit the stores August 14, features all self-penned tunes.

The former Mary Ward Catholic secondary school students did record a ‘cover’ version of Neil Young’s Ohio (check it out at www.dalagirls.com), but it is earmarked for an upcoming Canadian tribute fundraising album of Neil Young songs (called Borrowed Tunes 2) which is due out Sept. 25.

It will also include that other Scarborough band, the Barenaked Ladies, not to mention other top Canadian acts such as Our Lady Peace, Finger Eleven and Ron Sexsmith.

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An acclaimed Scarborough singing duo have their next performance more than an hour away from Toronto, making their fifth appearance at the well regarded annual Westben summer festival in Campbellford.

Robert Longo and Gabrielle Prata, who are married to each other, both sport impressive resumes which range from operatic to musical theatre. They are performing in Summertime and Hammerstein, featuring favourites from Show Boat, Oklahoma, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I, and The Sound of Music from July 25 to 29 and Aug. 1 and 2 in the unique 400-seat rural setting of the Westben festival.

Fans, however, won’t have to make the trip out of Toronto to hear them as their first solo CD is literally hot off the press.

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Scarborough-based rock outfit The First Time are set to rock the Horseshoe Tavern Friday night with the release of their new CD TakingBreakingDown.

It’s their second CD, although the line-up has been shuffled.

Unchanged is the Scarborough connection of guitarist James Whitton and drummer Stacey Washington.

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If you missed Brenda Carol and ClaireVoyance’s 11th annual four-night run at the Toronto Downtown Jazz Festival you just might be able to catch it on CD.

The East York jazz singer said the four-night stand, which wrapped up Wednesday at the Hothouse Cafe on Church street, was recorded with a view to eventually releasing another live CD.

Her first live CD was recorded in identical circumstances at the Hothouse Cafe during the Downtown Jazz Festival and garnered good reviews, copping a “CD of the Week” at Jazz Review in the U.S. It was released in 2000.

This time around she said a more sophisticated recording arrangement was used.

Carol along with husband Stephen Gardner are long-time residents of the Woodbine/Danforth area where both run their long-established teaching studio.

Carol, whose self titled studio debut CD from 1998 was also critically acclaimed, has found her way into the World Who’s Who in Jazz, Cabaret, Music and Entertainment, Vol. 1, Showbiz, Pioneers - Best Singers, Musicians, and Entertainers from 1606 to the present, published by the Federation of American Musicians, Singers and Performing Artists (FAMSPA).

Carol and her new ClaireVoyance bassist Jack Zorawski took time out from their rehearsing prior to their festival gig for this interview.

Speaking of new recordings, Zorawski, who is married with two adult children 23 and 19 years of age, has released a new CD this year, First Train, by his trio, which also features Richard Whiteman on piano and Kevin Coady on drums.

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